Third Wheel
by PrettyPleaseWithSugarOnTop
Summary: She had never wanted anyone to know about her love for Tsuruga Ren, so 'upset' was merely one thing she felt when the President found out. Fear was another. And the deal for his silence...? It hurt her.
1. Chapter 1

**So… this is kinda my version of the continuation of chapter 200. Yeah, I know the mangaka's continuation is definitely way better, whatever she should choose to do with it. But then there's FF, which you can write whatever your fangirl-inner-self wants to write XD **** For those of you who haven't read chapter 200, it doesn't matter. I'm writing things my way after all, so you don't have to bother to link this canonically to the original plot.**

* * *

_She never wanted anyone to know about her love for Tsuruga Ren, so 'upset' was merely one thing she felt when the President found out. Fear was another. And the deal in exchange for his silence...? It hurt her.  
_

* * *

Click. Click.

Her flats tapped erratically on the granite floor, following her body as she paced like a nervous candidate before the results of an exam. Only exams had never given this much pressure before, and this was coming from a girl who would do anything to score well and please her mother. Orange locks fluttered gracelessly as she shook her head frantically.

There was no special reason for the President to summon her. Maybe he was just going to ask her about how Tsuruga-san was doing, since she _had _called the agency up before concerning Tsuruga-san's strange behavior after all. There was always a chance that the annoyingly perceptive bearded man had noticed nothing. Nope, he had removed his sunglasses yesterday while dressed up as a self-righteous construction worker, and had given her a single knowing look before promptly leaving. _And_ sending her into a silent cardiac arrest for the rest of the day as Setsuka.

She groaned inwardly. Even in her ears, her argument with herself sounded lame and empty.

Kyoko's pulse raced, and she could feel something akin to heavy, poisonous lead settle in the depths of her stomach. What was the President going to do with her? If he knew the dreaded truth, and it was very likely he did, he was definitely going to tell Tsuruga-san about it, as her twisted imagination had supplied back then. If she allowed this to continue, then yes, the events of said twisted imagination was going to play out unstoppably in real life like a morbid film record.

"_Mogami-san's object of affections is me?" Tsuruga-san's dark eyebrows rose elegantly, and he glanced at the President. "Is this a joke?"_

_His informer folded his arms with the air of a self-known veteran. "No, for I am never wrong. I can't believe it myself."_

_Kyoko flinched when Tsuruga-san now looked at her through sardonically amused eyes. "After going through the events of your previous misfortune with Fuwa, you mean to say that you learnt nothing?" His voice came out in a derisive drawl, and she could feel daggers piercing her chest with every calmly spoken word. "Moreover," he added slowly, as if the line cost him as much disgust as it cost her pain, "Your target is me."_

_She cringed._

_He leaned down to her, head tilted slightly as a long, slender finger pointed lazily at her. "Are you that foolish? Or a masochist, perhaps?"_

"_No… no," she choked out desperately, hair sticking out in terrified spikes._

"_Didn't you swear to me before," he sighed dejectedly, "That you would defend you chastity with your life? Or was that just a lie?"_

_She blinked frenziedly, trying to avoid the narrowed dark eyes. "I don't know what you intended, but I do hope that protecting your chastity means more than just keeping yourself from kissing a man," he continued unhurriedly. Not for the first time, his tall form suddenly appeared very intimidating. _

"_No, it's not true!" she squealed, unable to keep silent any longer. Her face was a crimson, pained mask. "I know that dating can lead to very… wicked emotions, and when I'm overwhelmed by them the purity will be gone as well!"_

"_So you understand that much." Suddenly, he no longer towered over her, but appeared to be far, far away- somewhere she couldn't hope to reach. "And yet you attempt these toxic emotions of yours on me."_

"_No!" She blurted loudly again, hands waving comically before him and her face so red she resembled a tomato. "I'm not attempting anything on you! I won't attempt anything!"_

"_How terrible…" There he was again, his head shaking regally with an injured, dignified air. It was as if he barely heard her defensive exclamations, so wounded was he. "I feel so betrayed. You are such a fickle, frivolous child."_

_Nooo!_

"_I'm disappointed," he said, giving the finishing touch to murdering her heart. Inner Kyoko shriveled and sank. He gave her one of his trademark gentle looks, the one that usually melted her into a blushing puddle, but not this time. And then… "I'm disappointed."_

_HE SAID IT TWICE!_

Why did her imagination have to be so active and so… possibly spot-on?

Jelly Woods found Mogami Kyoko crouching outside the President's room a few minutes later, the girl's head bent desolately in her shaking hands as she whimpered frantically to herself. Jelly wasn't sure what the actress was saying, but she didn't miss out a few broken mumbles of "Twice… Why say it _twice_?" and "Why'd you tell him, Pres…"

"Kyoko-chan?" She begun, peering curiously at the sad pile of pink-clothed limbs sniveling on the floor. The petite form of the hairdresser bent to closer observe the almost unrecognizable girl. Kyoko's head suddenly popped up from her trembling palms, revealing puffy red eyes, her lower lip quivering. Woods clasped her hands together theatrically. "What's wrong?! Did someone mess up your make-up this morning?"

Kyoko flinched, and Woods could only watch on in amused awe as the actress hastily reassembled herself. Her originally tearing eyes abruptly took on a solemn look, small hand flying up to salute herself. Her back was suddenly as straight as a board, legs standing to attention together. In her bright pink LoveMe outfit, she looked hilarious with that soldierly look. "It's nothing!" she announced loudly, puffing up her chest. "I'm fine! The President wants to see me, right?"

"Ah, that's right," Woods said carelessly as she strode through the open wide doors leading to the president's office. Her perfectly coiffed blonde tresses bounced as she practically danced. Kyoko followed numbly behind, feeling small and insignificant behind the ironically shorter figure of the extravagant woman in front of her. The vast, towering doors closed as the duo entered into the refreshing AC that washed over their faces. "Darling says he has some stuff that he wants to talk to you concerning the whole BJ business."

Her guts tightened painfully, like a snake coiled tautly right before it prepared to strike- in her vulnerable, pulsing heart. "I see."

Inside, the tall stature of the President was seated nonchalantly on the couch, and she was momentarily thrown off-guard from her dread thanks to the outfit he was decked in. He was covered from head to toe in Samurai armor, and his metal-studded gloved hand played with a sneering painted Samurai mask. A sheathed katana lay elegantly next to his wooden-shrouded lap, and Kyoko prayed that it wasn't a real one. Something, however, told her that it was no plastic prop.

"Darling!" Woods called cheerily, oblivious to the misery Kyoko was in behind her. "Kyoko-chan is here!"

"Ah, Mogami-san," The President nodded kindly at the girl. "Won't you sit down?" He gestured at the seat opposite him, armor creaking at his hand movement. She tried not to blink at his mustached face smiling at her within the bounds of his head armor, and the radiant pink Sakura embroidered on the layer of cloth above his outfit.

She did as she was told, no longer feeling as self-conscious as she always did in her LoveMe uniform. Not with the President around. Woods waved at the man with a manicured hand, her eyes beaming. "I have to go now, Darling! Do contact me later!"

He waved back, the armor still creaking boisterously. Kyoko vaguely wondered how samurai fought when their outfits made so much noise. That train of thought, however, did not last very long the moment Woods left with a thundering close of the doors and a short silence ensued. Her fingers tightened over the softness of the couch she was seated on.

"Ah, Mogami-san," he smiled at her still, "Would you like some tea?"

"No, thank you." _Just get to what you want to say, damn it!_

He looked so woeful at her negative response that she sighed deeply before nodding. Breaking into a grin so bright it made the sun look like a shadow, the president grabbed a clay kettle from the table and poured into a bamboo cup. His padded fingers made squishing noises over the smooth surface of the container.

"So, Mogami-san," he continued, pushing the now filled cup towards her. She stared at the steam erupting in smoky tendrils over the brim. "I'm sure you know why we are here."

"Actually, I don't, sir," she said quickly, still looking at her offered cup. "Miss Woods did tell me it was to do with BJ though. Is our acting not satisfactory as of late?"

To her horror, the grin on his face only widened like a Cheshire cat at her words. "So you're going for this approach, are you?"

"I… don't know what you speak of, Sir," she answered, struggling not to stutter. _No, no, no!_

"I'm sure you do," Lory intervened casually. He picked up his own tea, sipping it elegantly. "_But_, if you want to play things this way, then I'll be more than willing to play along with you. Concerning your acting, my dear," he smirked over his cup like a very, very contented man, "It has been a little _too _satisfactory."

She shuddered inwardly at his words. Hastily her hands reached out to grab the cup, desperate for an anchor of some sort. "What do you… ?"

"Do you remember, Mogami-san, why I put you in the LoveMe section?"

Kyoko swallowed. "You said… I couldn't love."

He nodded. "If you don't love your fans, Mogami-san, and if you should never allow yourself to succumb into raw passion, then you can never go far as an actress. For example, think about what will happen one day if you have to act in a love drama. Can you effectively portray the image of a woman deeply in love? Or does it go against everything you believe in?"

_It does_, she clenched her fingers over the warm wood of her cup, _I don't want to fall. I don't want… Tsuruga-san to hate me._

"Your latest job," he put down the cup onto the table once more, eyeing her seriously, "was to play a sister with a brother complex. And I must say you did it spectacularly, Mogami-san. The passion… the love… it was all there."

She smiled weakly. "I'm glad to hear you liked my acting, sir."

"I _loved_ it." Hints of his playful, knowing grin was starting to form back onto his face. He leaned back, picking up the colorfully painted mask once more and glanced mindlessly at it. "I felt it was well-done. True, it wasn't perfect. After all, you slipped now and then and allowed _Mogami Kyoko_ to come in. Didn't you?"

Her heart lurched so violently in her chest she was almost shocked he couldn't hear it. Her tongue seemed to have knotted in her mouth, unable to unfurl itself and form words. She could only stare at him, and wait…

The smile had turned less playful and become gentler. "Why do you think I know this, Mogami-san?"

She felt her mouth unconsciously open and form words. "Yesterday… the construction worker… you were there."

_What am I fricking doing? Shut up, Kyoko!_

"Aah," Lory said softly. He chuckled light-heartedly. "I guess the uniform kind of gave me away, didn't it?"

She didn't reply. After all, she was too certain everything was obviously portrayed on her face; the wide, terror-stricken eyes, her loosened mouth and her erratically racing pulse.

He saw it and he placed his gloved hand on her trembling shoulder. "Don't be afraid, Mogami-san."

Somehow she got her senses back. His reassuring touch only made her angrier. What did the president know? Was he there when Sho the bastard had left her? Was he there when she had sacrificed everything for Sho only for the singer to throw it all back in her face like it was some kind of joke? Well, the president would certainly be there when Tsuruga-san did the same to her; to ruthlessly cut off all ties with her because of the same poisonous emotion flowing through her veins like toxic.

"I am _not_ afraid," she insisted, meeting the president's gaze head on. "I told myself I would never be afraid again. That's because there will be nothing that will happen to make me afraid."

"I don't know what exactly happened to you before, Mogami-san," Lory said kindly, "But I do hope you will not throw everything away for a single man."

"What do you mean?" _I am doing absolutely nothing for Sho!_

"You let a previous man in your life control everything you do, Mogami-san," he replied sternly, although not without sympathy. "Entering the showbiz, being unable to find in yourself the passion that is a true actress, and now to deny the opportunity to love again."

The cup fell from her slackened fingers and landed on the smooth floor like a broken marionette, shattering upon impact and its contents pouring unstoppably out like the emotions she could not control within herself. Both of them, for a long while, stared soundlessly at the green smears of tea staining the polished ground.

"Do you," Lory continued softly, in the kind of heart-stirring voice that maintained the mysterious spell overtaking Kyoko, "think I didn't notice? Setsuka is a character that is used to her brother's constant affections. You created her this way. She is, as you said before, _cool_. For her to look so consumed by unbridled passion and for her to blush so openly in her brother's arms… that is not her. That is you, Mogami Kyoko."

There was a short pause, where Kyoko's face was an expressionless mask. Inside her mind she could only go, _he knows! Holy samurais, he knows! I'm doomed! Please don't tell Tsuruga-san! Please! Pleaseeee!_

"It isn't me," she finally spoke bravely. "At least, I won't make it me anymore. So please, just forget what you saw."

Lory sighed, shoving the mask onto the table with a resounding clunk. "Why do you choose not to embrace this part of yourself, Mogami-chan?" She did not fail to notice the change of the suffix he addressed her in. "I think it is wonderful that you can find this change within yourself."

_Of course you do, you love-crazed pervert!_ She bit her lip so tightly that she almost swore she drew blood. There was nothing she could really rebut to that statement, not with the President, who would never understand. She could choose to 'embrace' it if he wanted, but Tsuruga-san would hate her for it and in the end the one getting hurt would be her once more. She would be the one who had gone against her promise to him to protect her chastity. She would be the hypocrite.

Her teeth released its hold over her lips and she forced out a single word. "_Please…"_

Lory looked at her sadly, taking in the desperation painting her pretty features. It was clear she had no idea how delighted Ren would be knowing that his long-time feelings were finally being reciprocated. Just like him, she was being consumed by the doubts and pain from her past. The two of them were far more similar than they knew.

This was something that Ren and Kyoko had to solve between themselves. He, Lory, could drop in a small interfering hand, but pushing them together forcefully would only make things worse. They had to come to terms to each other by their own will. It was, he decided, time he added a small bomb between them. This bomb could blow up and destroy what they had, or it would detonate the hidden emotions they had for each other and allow it to finally come to light.

It was up to them.

"I won't tell Ren," he spoke at last. "Under one condition, of course."

Her face brightened. "What is it? I will do anything! Do you want me to scrub the floors? I'll do it! I'll do all the LoveMe tasks! I'll do _anything!_"

He waved the torrent of words off, his armor swishing the air ominously. She immediately shut up.

"Oh, no," he announced with a calmness he did not feel. This was it; he was so excited he could barely keep still. If this worked out, the drama would be more intriguing than Dark Moon. By some chance that it succeeded in bringing them together he would be sipping wine triumphantly with one of his best achievements yet. Damn, he would deserve a Nobel Prize for this!

"I want you to, by the end of this month, make sure that Ren falls in love with another woman."

There was a long stretch of silence. The temperature seemed to have fallen by a few degrees, and Kyoko's back was so rigidly straight it looked as if someone had rammed a rod up her spine. Her countenance was fixed and wooden except for her eyes- they were saucer wide and her pupils seemed have dilated.

Why was the President doing this to her? Even worse, she couldn't protest that he was doing this on purpose to hurt her; after all, had she not insisted to him just a few seconds ago that she was going to see to it that she would no longer feel anything for Ren? So the president was mocking her, wasn't he? And yet, what made it more painful was that she was falling into his trap.

Hurt and pain threatened to engulf her.

The mere idea of Tsuruga-san with anyone was excruciating. She was no stranger to this pain- watching Sho in embraces with schoolgirls back then never lost the kind of burning impact on her. While she didn't like Sho anymore, the emotional scars still remained ingrained on her skin. And now they were being callously cut open once more.

He raised his eyebrow at her reaction. "You don't like it? I don't think I'm being too unreasonable here. After all, you were the one to tell me so strongly that you won't make that side of you _you_ anymore. From now on, it's all Setsuka, right?" Lory glanced blandly at the spilled tea on the floor. "I'm only trying to help you here. If you can allow yourself to succeed in bringing Ren with another woman by this month, then I will conclude that there is nothing to tell Ren. After all," he smiled slightly at her, "a woman in love will never push her man to another woman."

"Say no more." Her voice was deadly quiet. "I accept your terms. The end of this month?" She lifted her face to look confidently at her employer, a cat-smile curved on her lips. For that moment, she looked more like Setsuka, certain and cocky, rather than Kyoko. "I'll do it _before_ that."

* * *

_Stupid, stupid, stupid _was the only thing going through Kyoko's head as she sank headfirst onto the table in the LoveMe room. She wanted to shrivel up and die on the spot. Making Tsuruga-san fall in love within one month? It was impossible! He might not like her that way, but that didn't mean he would like other girls like that either! She knew that he was famous for being a bachelor, and an untouchable bachelor at that.

Still, if she was being honest with herself, she obviously didn't want him with anyone else. It would be like someone taking a knife and running it through the scars on her flesh, making them more agonizing and swelling up to the point that it would certainly never be healed for the rest of her life. How was she to put up with it? To watch Tsuruga-san with another woman, to smile sweetly at him as if all was well, and to congratulate the woman sincerely. Could she do that?

But she had weighed her options. If Tsuruga-san knew about the truth concerning her feelings, she could kiss their friendship goodbye. Kyoko couldn't even abide the idea of being hated and abhorred by Tsuruga-san. At least if he was with another girl they could still be friends. A strained friendship it would be on her part, but still a friendship. Besides, now to think of it, what _could _she give the top actor in Japan? Even Sho hadn't wanted her; why would Tsuruga-san, the no. 1 man in the entertainment industry? She was plain, she was a really boring individual, she was too reckless and if she listed out any more of her flaws it would be next year by the time she was finished. With another girl he would be happier; the girl would have to be pretty, and she would have to be extremely talented to match Tsuruga-san's status. Kyoko nodded bravely to herself as she ticked off the expected characteristics of the female candidates.

She tried to ignore the sting of the tears pooling her eyes.

But she knew she had to be strong now. This wasn't just for her; it was also for Tsuruga-san. He needed a good woman, and she would find him one because love was supposed to be selfless.

_Why, _she thought bitterly, _am I constantly giving up everything at my expense for the men I like?_

It wasn't completely at her expense, she reminded herself. Between the two –Tsuruga-san finding out about her feelings or him dating another girl- the former would definitely be more painful. She would have to live with his constant disapprobation in her for the rest of her life and endure being ignored by him _or_ she could still be friends with him and watch him with a happy love life. Just not with her. But he would be happy. Which would be more important. Right?

As usual, her mad imagination chose at that very second to stir and kick up in full gear.

_"Tsuruga-san!" Kyoko called cheerfully as she made her way towards him. "Would you like me to cook dinner for you tonight?"_

_He looked down at her warmly, a small smile on his soft lips. "That is very kind of you, Mogami-san, but I already have someone else to cook for me from now on. And can I say," he gave her a full-on dazzling smile, making her blink blankly, "that she cooks so incredibly well? So much better than you did. I hope you don't mind my saying so."_

_Kyoko felt as if a rollercoaster had run over her. "Not at all, Tsuruga-san."_

_Out of nowhere, a blonde, buxom woman abrutply appeared, slinking her arms seductively around Tsuruga's toned shoulders. "Ah, A-chan," Tsuruga-san said calmly. "You're here."_

_A-chan? _A-chan?_ When since did Tsuruga-san call anyone by 'chan'?!_

_Kyoko flinched as A-chan turned her head cockily towards her, giving Kyoko the perfect view of her gorgeous baby blues.  
_

_"I must thank you, girl," A-chan purred, a winning smile donning her lips. "For bringing Ren and I together. Look…" The woman tugged at Tsuruga's collar, flipping it down to reveal a dark, almost swollen mark on the side of the slender column of his long neck. "I've already marked him as mine. Right here."_

Kyoko was brought back from the lands of imagination as she flung her rug sack onto a nearby chair violently. It bounced vigorously onto the plastic of the seat, its contents threatening to spill out. She glared at the sight as if it was her biggest enemy.

"Get lost, A-chan!" She shouted, her voice nearly cracking with hatred. "You don't know anything!"

"Mogami-san?"

Oh no. Oh no. That deep, amused voice was all too similar, judging from the fact that it had just been inside her warped head a few seconds ago. She hastily dropped her antagonistic stance towards the chair and slowly turned around, heels dragging along the floor at a snail's pace. Her stomach clenched and unclenched.

Standing at the open door of the room was the real Tsuruga Ren and Yashiro. She must have been too immersed with fighting an imaginary someone in her head to notice their entrance.

Kyoko felt like diving head-first into a hole on the ground. If there was one, anyway, and inwardly she lamented like a spoiled child at its absence.

Tsuruga-san's long eyebrows were raised in amusement, his dark, beautiful eyes twinkling with a mixture of humor and curiosity. Beside him, Yashiro looked as if he wanted to laugh but didn't dare.

Just looking at Tsuruga-san sent memories she didn't want to recall._ Her hands... running down the toned warmth of his hard, sculpted body, her mouth slanted against the side of his long, smooth neck. His weight holding her down later on... the long legs on either side of her shivering body as his smothering, perfect lips approached the curve of her trembling breast_. It had all been a professional act, nothing outside of work, but her traitorous heart refused to take it as what it was supposed to be. Right now, gazing into his gentle expression, it was taking every single acting lesson she had received not to blush.

"Tsuruga-san, Yashiro-san," she bowed politely, praying they would forget everything they had seen just now. "What brings you here?"

"I happened to finish shooting early today and thought I would drop by," Tsuruga-san said, smiling softly at her. It was as if all those sexual activities between them had never existed from the way he was behaving. And technically, it hadn't. They had happened between Setsuka and Cain, not Ren and Kyoko. "Would you like to have lunch with us?"

"Of course," Kyoko beamed, forcing the rational side of her away. Yes, she knew she had to stop having lunches with a man she was supposed to forget. But this was simply a senior-and-junior lunch, she told herself sternly.

"That's good," He smiled gently at her, ignoring Yashiro's wide grin. Meanwhile, Kyoko struggled not to wince at herself. Was she so into him that she had begun to imagine things? It was almost as if happiness had lightened Tsuruga-san's dark obsidian eyes at that very heartbeat when she had agreed.

What a lovesick fool she was.

"By the way, Mogami-san," he continued curiously, his head tilting to one side, "Who is this… A-san you were so angrily referring to just now?"

_Shit._

* * *

_-PPWSOT_


	2. Chapter 2

**Oh my heavenly heavens! So many reviews! There's nothing like reviews to keep me going, and when I checked my account I was totally overwhelmed. Man, am I happy. I've got like, 19 reviews and that's as many kisses I'm gonna give everyone! SMOOCHES X 19 EVERYBODY! Anyway, this is going to be a multi-chaptered story, so I hope you guys will stick with me along the way. Thank you!**

* * *

_She never wanted anyone to know about her love for Tsuruga Ren, so 'upset' was merely one thing she felt when the President found out. Fear was another. And the deal in exchange for his silence...? It hurt her._

* * *

Yashiro smirked to himself.

It had been a few long hours since he could do that with satisfaction. Ren had been quiet and moody ever since he had gotten back from his shooting with Kyoko-san, and the atmosphere between him and his manager had been frigid for a while. Yashiro hadn't dared to ask; not that he could anyway, since most of the BJ shooting was supposed to be confidential. Even so, the sly manager knew Ren's dark mood was most likely something to do with his relationship with Kyoko-san.

Concerning Ren's shooting today on his new drama- it had been quite shocking for the entire cast and Yashiro when the actor had gotten a NG. The scene hadn't even been a difficult one; nothing Ren couldn't have managed. Ren had not look too pleased himself, and politely he had requested for an immediate retake from the director. The rest of the shooting had then gone on smoothly with no disruptions; Ren's acting was once again top-notch. Still, the fact remained that a single NG, something that was more than common among average actors, was a blaring anomaly for Tsuruga Ren.

In the car after the shooting, Yashiro had hoisted the suitcase to the front of his feet before glancing dubiously at Ren. The actor did not acknowledge the glance from where he sat at the driver's seat. His hooded gaze remained fixed on the windshield, but Yashiro knew that_ he_ knew that his manager was looking at him.

"So," Yashiro began, going for what he prayed was the casual approach, "how's things with Kyoko-san?"

Okay. So maybe he should had been less direct.

"Fine," was Ren's short, calm reply. That single word, however, only brought on a torrent of exclamations from his very curious and enthusiastic manager.

"That's good to hear!" Yashiro announced with relish and blatant relief, taking Ren's single-word answer as permission to open the floodgates as a self-proclaimed love counselor. The car slowed to a halt before the red traffic lights. "And here I was, being so worried that you two had a fight or something! Don't scare me like that, Ren! But then again, I'm also really disappointed that there's been no progress between the both of you! When are you ever going to confess to her, Ren?" His excitement only grew as he ranted on, oblivious to the frosty atmosphere. "You can't let her affect you forever, you know! What you really need, Ren, is to start making a move on her already-"

He stopped, noticing the abrupt flash in Ren's impenetrable dark eyes. It had been subtle and probably imperceptible to most people; but then, Yashiro was not most people. He had been Ren's manager for a long time for a reason. Reading Ren was no easy task, yet it was an art he had been honing for years. Being with the man for so many years helped of course, and right now the slight crack in Ren's armour did not go unnoticed by him. The tightening of Ren's knuckles on the steering wheel, that fleeting gleam in his raven eyes and how his muscled, long back slightly stiffened…

Yashiro leapt like a squirrel over a juicy, juicy hazelnut.

"Oh _frick_!" he exclaimed, spinning in his seat to face Ren completely. If he had needed the bathroom then he would had no doubt wet his pants. "You guys… you… and her? Really? Already?" Excitement had rendered him incapable of stringing a single sentence; the leather seatbelt straining against his eager form.

"Before you give yourself cardiac arrest, Yashiro-san," Ren replied coolly, hands still fixed on the steering wheel, "Allow me to say that none of it is what you think. Everything we did was done professionally."

Dark silky locks of hair skimmed past the perfect cheekbones as he turned to look out of the window.

"Not for you!" Yashiro blurted triumphantly. Not for the first time he cursed the fact that he could not ask too much about the BJ business, confidential as it was. "I bet every single thing you did with her was done genuinely from the bottom of your heart! And there's just no way that Kyoko-chan didn't feel anything either! Don't forget who you are, Ren! No girl alive can resist the charms of Tsuruga Ren, professional or not!"

Ren sighed softly. He would never admit it to Yashiro, but a massive side of him wished that his manager was right concerning Kyoko. However, Yashiro didn't know that she was a kind of girl who had seen him completely undressed in the shower and yet displayed no sign of bashfulness. She had been beautiful and seductive as Setsuka, but also completely unaware of the gazes she had conjured from men around her, including his own. It was true she had taken him by surprise (as covertly as he had dealt with it) many times with her ministrations, but it didn't change things that he suspected Kyoko was naively unaware of the boundaries between Man and Woman.

She was so innocent that it made him desire her even more, and at the same time he also wished he could push her away for risk of tainting her. But if he was being honest with himself, Ren knew that everything he did with her as Cain was simply an excuse to do what he could not as her sempai.

_The things they had done for the past few days as Cain and Setsuka… The burning honeyed mark cleverly hidden on the side of his neck...  
_

He must not allow it to distract him again. Not during shooting, and not during anything. What on earth had happened to his famous self-control?

"You make me sound so perverted, Yashiro-san," he finally murmured in response to his manager's exuberant remarks. The car shot down the road.

"Not perverted, Ren!" Yashiro laughed sheepishly, tugging restlessly at his black seatbelt. "I'm just saying you're an experienced playboy!" He balked at the dark, unamused side-glance the actor sent him. "I mean- you're good with the ladies."

There was a silence.

But Yashiro couldn't help it. No, he couldn't. He just had to say it. "So," he said innocently, a puckish look crossing his features, "It's lunchtime. And we're kind of early. I think I know where we're heading to next. At least, I know where _you're_ heading to next."

This time Ren turned his head fully to face Yashiro, making the 'love counsellor' squirm upon seeing the perfect gentlemanly smile curved on his flawless lips. The manager flinched further at the sudden shower of imaginary flowers fluttering from the roof the car and onto Ren's suddenly sparkling semblance. "Yashiro-san," Ren smiled cordially, "Please shut up."

Sometimes, he really disliked how Yashiro could read him so well.

* * *

Kyoko fidgeted uncomfortably under Tsuruga-san's inquisitive gaze.

Oh Lord, why had she allowed her crazed imagination to get away with her? True, she had no doubt that her imagination was simply the _slightly _exaggerated version of real life events. If Tsuruga-san really found himself a lover one day, then Kyoko had an irking suspicion that the very lover would be just like A-chan_. Pretty_ would definitely have to be the icing of the cake.

But right now, what could she say in response to his question? It wasn't as if Kyoko could tell him, "_Oh, A-san is just your imaginary girlfriend in my head. You know, in one of the many twisted fantasies I have of you"._

Tsuruga-san would think she was a pervert straight away!

Said man was currently looking at the frozen, horror-stricken stature of the girl before him with some concern. "Mogami-san?"

_Of course! Why hadn't she thought of that?_

Very quickly Kyoko recovered her senses and she flashed a small, shy smile at her attractive sempai. Yashiro peered openly at her, his eyes large with curiosity behind his round, shimmering glasses. She forced out a short, strained laugh, copper locks waving in embarrassment.

"Oh, to be honest with you, Tsuruga-san," she grinned feebly, fingers clasped tightly together, "I was actually practicing a few made-up roles in the room, seeing that I was free for that moment. I thought no one was around and well…" She let out another awkward burst of laughter, her cheeks red, "I guess I got caught by you two. It's really embarrassing…"

They had no idea.

To her surprise, Tsuruga-san gave her a smile so gentle she wanted to melt under his warm-hearted gaze. "I don't see anything embarrassing about someone working hard," he replied tenderly, causing her to blush visibly upon hearing the compassionate tone. It was almost as if he… _admired_ her from the way he spoke and looked at her. Immediately she wanted to smack her own head for thinking this way.

_You are crazy over him,_ she told herself, _remember that order properly. _He_ is not crazy over you._

But she could not help but feel guilty for lying to him, and also simultaneously glad he hadn't inquired anymore about 'A-san'.

Determined to distract herself from the turbulent swirl of emotions clouding her mind, she quickly grabbed her lopsided rug sack from her chair and slung it over her thin shoulder. Her flats echoed noisily over the smooth, marble floor as she made her way back to her companions' side. The actress switched off the fluorescent lights, the electric hum cutting off as darkness flooded the place. She shut the door quietly behind them before setting off for LME's cafeteria, chattering jubilantly with her sempai and the manager.

A few minutes trickled by as they found seats and lowered their food-laden trays on the table. Kyoko was practically salivating from the sight of the salad piled high on her porcelain plate. It simply awed her on how the leafy greenness could be created with such delicious elegance and yet at the same time be so simple. Finally, in a long while, her thoughts were being momentarily freed of Tsuruga-san.

"And the ingredients are so straightforward too!" She exclaimed, currently in mid-rant about the fresh veggie dish. "Lettuce, tomatoes, some mayonnaise… it's really how you compile them together that matters! And the freshness, of course!"

So caught up in her babbling she failed to notice Ren watching her with a soft, serene look, a small genuine smile on his sculpted lips. Yashiro did, of course, and he grinned devilishly at his companion's expression. Perhaps it was time for the 'love counselor' to get into action…

"You would make a wonderful housewife, Kyoko-san," he hastily gushed, beaming at the LoveMe worker opposite him. "The way you diligently observe our dishes… any husband would be honored to eat your cooking one day!" The manager smiled guilelessly, ignoring the dangerous looks Ren discreetly sent his way.

"Oh, observing and cooking are two different things!" Kyoko laughed, not realizing that 'love counselor' Yashiro at that moment would link anything she did to marital affairs. She peered curiously at the manager, one hand playing with a plastic fork. "So… Yashiro-san likes women who can cook?"

The manager spluttered, not expecting his ingenious plan of matchmaking to backfire on him. Making sure that he avoided eye contact with Ren, he shoved a smile on his face. "Oh, well… That would be nice, I guess…"

"Really?" Now Kyoko's interest was piqued, and when that happened, she would go to the ends of the earth to satisfy her thirst for knowledge. "I've always been curious about this, but what type of women does Yashiro-san like?"

_Why? _Yashiro fought back a grimace as Ren smiled angelically at him. No doubt the damned actor was enjoying the way the tables were turned. "Yes, Yashiro-san," the beautiful dark-haired man hummed amiably, "Do enlighten us."

"Um, well," Yashiro mumbled, adjusting his glasses vigorously and suddenly very interested in a creamy glob of mayonnaise on his salad, "It would be nice if she was a kind person and well, considerate too." He looked up timidly and flinched at Kyoko's happily expectant gaze. Squashing the bloodthirsty urge to strangle Ren, he added reluctantly, "Well if she was pretty it'd be a bonus too…"

"I see." Kyoko stroked her chin contemplatively. Speaking of types, she thought sourly, it would be pretty important to ask her sempai what _his_ type was thanks to the new heart-wrenching mission she was given by President Lory. The fact was that she simply didn't want to know; didn't want any part in helping Ren hook up with an anonymous woman. She knew that her agreement in taking part in this was going to haunt her for the rest of her life. However, this wasn't the time to dwell on it- if she wanted to weep she would do it when she was wretchedly alone and in her bed, not when she was in the middle of eating lunch with Tsuruga-san.

It seemed her fate to be chained to heartbreak for the rest of her life.

"Mogami-san?"

She quickly glanced up, now broken out of her bitter reverie, and looked straight into the concerned dark gaze of Tsuruga-san. He leaned slightly closer to her, close enough that she could smell his musky cologne. "Are you alright?"

_Eeeeeee!_

This close proximity was not helping her thoughts at all! If this continued, everything they had done as Cain and Setsuka was going to come swarming back into her already warped mind! Plus the loose black turtleneck sweater the tall, gorgeous man was wearing only made her think of the well-hidden love mark she had left on his neck. It scared her to see the difference between the cold, unpredictable Cain and the currently gentle, yet equally unpredictable sempai. Thinking of such naughty things were fine with Cain, but not with Tsuruga-sempai!

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine!" Kyoko ground out, backing away swiftly until her spine hit the chair. Now painfully self-conscious, she fought to keep the conversation going before any awkward lulls could come in. "So... uh, Tsuruga-san, what type of women do _you _like?"

There was a pregnant pause. She could only watch meekly as Tsuruga-san's long, sooty eyelashes blinked at her question. Inwardly however, the actress was hyperventilating at the unfathomable expression on his angular features- while Yashiro was having a mental freak-out.

_Reeeeen!_ The manager screamed silently. _This is your chaaaance! Confess! What should I do? I'm in the way! Maybe I should excuse myself to go to the washroom!_

Before the 'love counselor' could do that, however, Ren abruptly broke into a glamorous smile, obsidian eyes twinkling. Kyoko and Yashiro both cringed at the sudden eruption of sophisticated, sparkling roses surrounding his smiling, dazzling demeanor. The senior cocked his head warmly to one side, heart-stirring smile still intact. "I am simply grateful to any girl who would have me."

It was the kind of behavior that would normally send fan-girls on a rampage.

_He's angry!_ Yashiro howled inwardly, his inner self clutching his owl-like glasses frantically. _He's mad because Kyoko-chan is being so oblivious to his feelings! Seriously, what are you doing, Ren? This is your chance to confess and you blew it!_

The 'love counselor' wasn't going to let things go that easily, however. After all he wasn't just Ren's manager but also his friend. There was no way Yashiro could just stand there without salvaging the remains caused by Ren's negligence! The manager would see to it himself that Kyoko knew of Ren's feelings! Besides, he wasn't exactly looking forward to putting up with the actor's moodiness later either.

"Ah, Kyoko-chan," Yashiro started, forcing himself to be calm. The LoveMe worker's gaze flicked to him, and he wondered if he was imagining the faint disappointment in her round brown eyes. Was she just as affected by Ren's answer as he was? "Ren's just being shy. Of course he has a type of girl he likes. Everyone does, much less him." The bespectacled man, with no ease, ignored the silent, deadly waves of an ominous aura scorching his left side. There was no need to point out who sat to his left, was there?

"Really?" Kyoko blinked curiously at him, chewing on a piece of lettuce.

"Of course!" Yashiro announced triumphantly, his food now abandoned. His intelligent eyes roved the wavy locks of her copper hair. "Ren simply adores women with dyed hair!"

"What?" _Tsuruga-sempai does? I never knew!_

The actor sent Yashiro a cold glare, aristocratic onyx eyes narrowed. Anyone would have been terrified, and true enough Yashiro was, but he ploughed on bravely like a soldier battling in war. "And- and- he also thinks girls are cute dressed in pink! It shows off their feminine side to him!" The manager beamed at Kyoko, grinning at her LoveMe uniform.

There was a silence.

Kyoko stared at her senior, her gaze apologetic as she lowered her veggie-covered fork. "I'm sorry for saying this, but you really have odd tastes in women, Tsuruga-san!"

Not for the first time, Yashiro truly felt for Ren.

* * *

Mogami Kyoko walked out into the cool night air, sighing deeply. Her boots thudded lightly along the hard, stony ground. She blinked blearily at the bright, flashy lights glimmering along the bustling streets, and hastily shifted aside as a few passer-byers made their way across her. Shivering, her hands tugged closely at her thick windbreaker.

She sighed again.

There was really no apparent reason for her to sigh, not to her co-actors in Box R anyway. The shooting earlier on had gone amazingly well, and even the director had given her an approving nod afterwards. If Kyoko was not currently being plagued by her own troubles, she herself would have been proud. The character Natsu had not been created overnight, after all; Kyoko had travelled through a very bumpy road before managing to form the perfect version of 'Natsu'.

Smug, confident and beautiful Natsu… There were many times where Kyoko had wished she could be more like her role. Natsu was mean, wasn't she? Well, somehow mean people always got what they wanted. When Kyoko was young she had been bullied by all the popular girls in the school; popular, _mean _girls who were happy and wealthy. Those girls were the very girls whom Kyoko had caught kissing Sho. It wasn't that she still liked Sho (no way in hell!)- but it was about the fact that mean girls got what they wanted- including the guys they liked.

How about her? Kyoko had never hurt a fly in her life (Okay, maybe one or two) and what did she get? The first guy she liked used her as a maid and promptly dumped her. The second guy she liked? Yeah, she was to play matchmaker for him with another gal. And who knew he had such weird tastes in girls, as Yashiro had told her? Just great. This was why love sucked. For naive people like her, she would never do well in that department. If anything, she was better off just plotting ways to crush Fuwa Sho. _That _she could handle.

Passer-byers shuddered as evil, dark spirits abruptly shot out of Kyoko's suddenly menacing profile. They could almost literally see the lethal ink-dark cloud hanging over her heaving shoulders, and this time, _they_ shifted –no, scurried- out of the way. Within minutes, the spooked stallholders nearby hastily closed their stalls for the night before getting the hell out of her vicinity.

Meanwhile, Kyoko was too busy being wrapped up in her depressing, morbid thoughts to notice anything. Depressing thoughts such as the fact that within an hour she was to head over to resume her role as Setsuka. The weight of the heavy sling bag on her shoulder only made her think of the fishnet stockings, ripped denim shorts, skimpy dark camisole and stiletto boots inside. And the wig.

Was this some sort of sadistic game pulled by the president? That she was supposed to be all lovey-dovey with the guy she liked but couldn't have? Mean, bad little Setsuka got the guy she liked, of course. He was her brother, even. But she'd still gotten him, hadn't she? How was that fair?

"Um, excuse me?"

Instantly Kyoko's head whipped up, her orange locks spinning and her eyes glowering furiously. The mini dark Kyoko spirits sprung up, ready to annihilate the person who had dared disrupt their mistress's angry rumination. That was- until Kyoko looked into a pair of round, innocent eyes belonging to a small teenage blonde girl.

The dark spirits swiftly retreated.

"Um, hi," Kyoko forced out lamely, only noticing now that the streets were empty aside from herself and the girl. Had she been that scary and that immersed in her misery? In fact, now to think of it, she couldn't even remember the girl approaching her in the first place. "Can I help you?"

The blonde girl, whom Kyoko noted to be around her early-teens and was also carrying a sling bag, peered up at her in a mixture of nervousness and excitement. She opened her mouth meekly. "Uh, I'm sorry to disturb you, but um, I just kinda wanted to know… because you look so familiar…" Kyoko waited patiently for the girl to get to the point. "Are-you-the-actress-who-played-Mio-in-Dark-Moon?" she finally burst out, her words flowing out in an almost incoherent flood. The teen tugged at her skirt anxiously, awaiting said actress's response.

Kyoko's eyes widened, almost not daring to believe the miracle before her. Was this a dream? Someone other than her co-actors and the director had recognized her. _Someone she didn't know._ Someone from the public.

Heart pounding rapidly like a bullet train, the LoveMe worker's face broke into a cheery grin, the mini spirits now dancing in thrilled circles around her. She was being recognized by the public. She was being _recognized_. "Yes! That's me! Mogami Kyoko at your service! Can I help you?"

The girl gasped loudly and clasped her hands together as if she was in a church. Her irises immediately glimmered with a star-struck expression. "Oh my gosh!" She squealed, feet bouncing lightly along the hard pavement as waves of blonde hair twirled. "That's amazing! I can't believe that someone who acted in Dark Moon is right in front of me!" Kyoko's spirits (literally and not-so-literally) rose. "That means you know Tsuruga Ren-sama, right?"

The spirits plummeted and crashed like a smoking plane. "Er… yes?"

"That's incredible!" The girl gaped, her hands clasped so tightly that her knuckles were white. Her eyes were like adoring diamonds on her face. "Do you think… you could, you know, help me tell him that he's just amazing, that I'm his number 1 fan? That I love him _so_ much? Please? Tell him that my name's Yuki. Nimomiya Yuki. In fact," the girl abruptly whipped out her mobile from her pocket, "give him my number for me!"

"Umm… okay." There was really no point, Kyoko thought dully, in showing her disappointment. She had been a fool for expecting so much in the first place.

The teenage girl fished out a piece of rough paper from the side of her bag and began scribbling her number with a small pen. "Here," she said, shoving the jagged piece of paper into Kyoko's limp hands. "Give this to him. I've added my name, home address, number, school and age." Kyoko gulped. "Tell him to call me!" Yuki gushed boisterously, stowing her pen and mobile absently back into her skirt pocket. "Even a text would be fine! He knows where to find me!"

"Will do." Kyoko saluted feebly, paper fluttering in her fingers.

"Thank you so much!" Yuki gibbered excitedly, grasping the actress's shoulders. "Please make sure he contacts me! If he does, well," the girl released her, "my life will finally hold meaning at last!"

The very words seemed to stun Kyoko. She watched blankly as Yuki finally scampered off, singing merrily off-tune to herself, skirt flickering in the breeze. The way Yuki was moving it was as if her bag weighed nothing at all. Even after the girl's footsteps and horrid singing had long faded, the LoveMe worker remained standing stone-still in shock, paper dancing in her hand

Where had she heard those words before?

"_As long as Sho-chan loves me, then my life will hold meaning at last!"_

Kyoko flinched drastically at the familiar words ringing in her head. Quick as a flash she swung a quivering palm up and clawed at her short locks, her mouth pulled in a disgusted grimace. _Damn you, Sho! Damn you, DAMN YOU, YOU STUPID MORON!_

She herself hadn't been any different from Yuki there, had she? In fact, looking at Yuki's innocently hopeful face and blonde hair had also immediately reminded her of Manaka-san. The poor girl had been flaying for Tsuruga-san's attention throughout almost the whole of the BJ shooting, only to be ignored. Sure, she went for extremes, but then Kyoko had also once done the same for the bastard Shotaro, hadn't she? Kyoko had also been ignored and treated poorly by that bastard, same as Manaka-san with Cain Heel.

True, she was deeply disappointed that Yuki hadn't recognized her because she was Mio's fan, but somehow she had felt sorrier for the girl rather than mad. It reminded Kyoko of her thoughts earlier about the whole bad girl issue. Manaka wasn't a bad girl, that Kyoko was sure. She was just like Kyoko back then- naively making a fool of herself for attention from the man she liked. She didn't mean any harm, and she'd never treated Setsuka badly- although that was mostly likely because she was scared of her. As for Yuki... well, Kyoko highly doubted that Tsuruga-san would call her.

Only… if the small Pandora box in Kyoko hadn't been forced open by her erudite sempai, she would have perhaps felt even sadder for Manaka and Yuki. But as more of the metal locks began falling apart, the more jealously she began to feel towards any girl who liked _him._

Quickly she shook her head determinedly. This wouldn't do. The poison could run through her blood if it wanted; but she was not to let it taint anyone but her. She was not to let it taint Tsuruga-san with _her_ disease.

So if Kyoko couldn't have Tsuruga Ren, then she would not let any A-sans have him. No Natsus and no Setsukas. She could at least see to that. Quietly, in the recesses of her reluctant mind, she began to plan how to bring Manaka and Cain together without breaking out of character from Setsuka.

A sob grew in her throat.

* * *

**Next chapter- Cain and Setsuka coming our way! Also, I am a review whore- feed me reviews and I'll feed you with quicker updates!**

**PS: to those who haven't read 201, _please don't read on!_ Anyway, for all who read it already, I'm sure you know Kyoko is withdrawing from Setsuka's role! I'm a bit shocked, and also excited as to what's to come! Grrrr why is the next chapt coming only in July?! So long. **

**-_PPWSOT_**


	3. Chapter 3

_She had never wanted anyone to know about her love for Tsuruga Ren, so 'upset' was merely one thing she felt when the President found out. Fear was another. And the deal for his silence...? It hurt her._

* * *

Kyoko took a deep breath as she stood at the door of the hotel room, stiletto heels sinking into the fresh carpeted floor. Cool air permeated her jittery senses from all directions, the AC blowing incessantly across her overly exposed alabastar skin. Long shining marble walls of the hotel corridors surrounded her, enclosing her in what felt like a little isolated island away from the world.

Almost absently the young woman reached up to check that her blonde wig was properly in place. Her red lips twitched, causing the chain attached to swing minutely against her tight, seductive choker curved around her slender neck. She made sure that she maintained the cocky, unfazed gleam in her narrow eyes that was beautiful Setsuka, her head tilted almost challengingly to practically no one in the air-conditioned vicinity. The actress tightened her hold over her black briefcase, willing herself to calm down. She would badly need this calm if she was about to do what she planned to do later. Also, facing Cain after realizing she had genuinely fallen in love with him was going to be… challenging, that being an understatement. Yes, the most ironic thing was that they were _supposed_ to act romantically with each other, and it was exactly that which hurt her.

Letting out a small restrained sigh, she fished out the key from her miniature pocket with some difficulty –hello, tight pants?-before turning it in the lock. It opened easily, and before long she was in the dimly lit room, looking around with what she hoped was cool detachment. There was no one in sight; one of the two beds –his- was messy with the silk blankets thrown to one side. However, the sounds of rushing water from the closed shower confirmed Setsuka's suspicions- he was bathing.

Simultaneously she felt relieved and disappointed at the same time. At least she could delay the awkward greetings with him; the unnatural transition from _the gentle senior and the shy junior_ to the _cold but loving brother with his confident sister_ still needed time getting used to. Here there was finally more time for her mental preparation.

She put down her suitcase by her own neatly made bed, heels sliding over the lush, velvet carpet. It was nearly ten already- didn't the man know that taking showers too late at night was unhealthy? Shaking her head disapprovingly she left the beds and headed to the kitchen, platinum hair flicking. Knowing him, he'd also probably skipped dinner before heading here. Kyoko opened the fridge and pulled out a crinkled plastic packet of a cold loaf of bread. She tossed a few slices of bread into a toaster and mutely watched as the bread began to warm. Pools of reddish heat glowed from within the confines of the equipment, reflecting the conflict in her gaze.

This wasn't dinner, but at the very least it was sufficient as a midnight snack. This, she supposed, was better than going on an empty stomach for the night. Honestly, this was the kind of thing that made her really worried about the debonair man who was so responsible in his work but at the same time so irresponsible about himself. Yashiro couldn't be around him 24 hours, and as a mere kouhai neither could she find the excuse to. Besides, she had her own duties to see to. Silently she made a mental note to see to it that Manaka-san, or any other good candidates Kyoko was to choose, would take good care of his daily lifestyle needs.

There it was; the jealousy in her was rising again, like a malignant serpent. She stuffed her fist impulsively into her mouth and clamped down on her knuckles hard, molars digging frustratedly into soft skin. This was totally not Setsuka behavior, but for that minute, in the small hotel room away from the rest of the world, she did not care. Knowing that she was jealous scared her- she _loathed _feeling this painful emotion again after so long without Sho. Viciously she vented out her anger onto her innocent hand, desperate to suppress the poison in her veins for as long as she could-

She let out a muffled shriek as a pair of strong arms wound themselves around her tiny waist, pulling her diminutive form against a lengthy, hard body. Her hand immediately fell loose of her open mouth, shocked as she was by the sudden intrusion of her personal space. Musky warmth enveloped her.

"Setsu." A deep baritone rumbled evenly by her ear, making her shiver. It stunned her that she hadn't even heard him come out from the shower- hadn't realized that the sounds of running water had faded, or heard the creak of the bathroom door opening. She could feel cool droplets of water from his dark locks drip onto her exposed, pearl-like clavicle. It ran a tantalizing crystal path down into her small cleavage. "Why do you do this to yourself?"

She fought back the urge to gulp when his large hand reached out to lift her ravaged knuckles. They could both clearly see the reddened indents on where her teeth had landed on the delicate flesh.

_I need to get back to Setsu's character quickly!_ Kyoko panicked. _I allowed myself that brief moment of being me, and see what happened? I can't break my promise to the President!_

A few heartbeats passed.

Cain's dark eyebrow arched when the small woman in his arms abruptly smirked. She raised a long, slender arm casually and touched the side of his cheek, scarlet fingernails scratching gently against his silky, unblemished skin. "Is NIi-san worried about me?" She smiled sultrily.

"Is there anything wrong with that?" He leaned down, and she watched almost breathlessly when he pressed his lips against her bitten knuckles. She knew that her skin was still coated with some of her residue saliva, and her heart raced at the feel of his own damp, smothering mouth on her, their liquids mingling.

This wouldn't do. Underneath the dauntless persona that the steely Setsuke donned, _Kyoko, vulnerable little Kyoko _was going to suffer from heartbreak once all this was over. She could keep slamming the Pandora box shut as much as she wanted, but she couldn't deny the fact that the metal locks were wide open, and no amount of venomously shoving the lid down was going to change that. If all this… flirting kept going on, it was going to be harder than ever to hand him over to a very willing Manaka. It was bittersweet enough already, without adding more anguish into said heart-wrenching concoction.

She never once considered the fact whether _he_ would be willing.

Cain slowly halted in his actions, his exotic dark hooded eyes flickering lazily, almost boredly. Now that she had properly turned to look at him she saw that he was casually dressed in a loose long-sleeved dark grey shirt that easily delineated the taut curves of his sleek, elegantly muscled build, and a pair of lengthy tight black pants. If anyone had taken a closer look at him, they would have noticed the faint but fiery sensual glow in his ink black irises. "You stop me." It was a statement of fact- he sounded almost practical. Yet she did not fail to register the even accusation he was throwing her way.

Setsu looked calmly at him, her hand currently in the midst of pulling away from his sinfully intoxicating lips. "Nii-san needs to eat. I won't let you distract me from making sure you do."

"And what if I persist in distracting you?" His head bent steadily and her eyes widened when he unexpectedly sank his lips calmly onto the side of her exposed, creamy neck.

_What was Tsuruga-san doing? _All this was totally not necessary; they didn't need to maintain the siblings act to such extremes since no one was around in the privacy of their hotel room, and she was sure that he was currently not being manipulated by that mysterious ominous dark side that lurked in him as an occasional puppeteer_._ In fact, he had promised never to let it happen again, and she trusted him. So surely there was no need to do what he was doing? It was time to stop before she enjoyed this too much.

"Nii-san," Setsuka let out a soft purr, turning her head to rest against his ebony locks, "As much as I would love spending the whole night like this," she sighed when his velvet tongue shot out unfazedly to lick her neck in a wet, hot caress, "I will be even madder if you don't eat. And when I'm mad…" She tugged herself away from his embrace, and to her surprise he finally allowed her, his mouth moving off her skin noiselessly. "I will throw the most _awful_ tantrums."

There was a silence where he simply watched her intently.

She ignored the burning intensity of his discerning stare, and moved as casually as she could towards the now ready toast. In truth, it wasn't just his unwavering stare she was ignoring, but rather the vague throb from the raw skin on her marked knuckles. The sensation was so arousing and _wrong..._

The young lady then proceeded to pick up the warm toast gingerly from the confines of the small rounded machine that was the toaster, and dropped the heated and crispy slice onto a prepared plate. The scent of freshly toasted yeast smothered the air, encompassing the cool air-conditioned atmosphere. She then jauntily sauntered over to the fridge, her heels sliding and gleaming like black needles in the darkened lighting, and took out a wrapped cube of butter.

All the while she could feel his acute gaze burning holes on her petite form, and she practically had to summon every drop of her actress's will to maintain her Setsuka persona and not crumble. What was Tsuruga-san thinking in his head? Was all this... _passion_ necessary for what they were doing, even behind the scenes? Was he looking at her as Cain, or as Tsuruga Ren?

_Don't be stupid, _Kyoko instantly scoffed in her head, wanting very much to stab herself for even having such thoughts, _Tsuruga-san is a professional actor. He takes pride in everything he does, and he will act out his role to the very end as realistically as possible because that's the kind of amazing actor he is. _

Before long Setsuka was placing the plate of deliciously buttered toast onto the table outside the kitchen and also located diagonally opposite their beds. She allowed a smirk to tug at the corner of her scarlet lips, watching expectantly as her brother languidly seated himself onto the armchair with a grace that secretly set her heart tingling. "Enjoy your meal, Nii-san. It isn't much, but I will definitely prepare the best breakfast tomorrow-"

"Don't bother." There he was, looking lazily up at her with those exotic, obsidian eyes. She could still, to a bittersweet mix of dismay and admiration, make out the diamond drops of clear liquid hanging from his wet overlong raven bangs. His expression, however, was as unfathomable as those droplets were clear. "We have to reach the film set by six in the morning tomorrow. There will be no time to eat then."

His words were arranged matter-of-factly, and they poked a painful jab at her heartstrings as if they were directed personally at her.

"But Nii-san needs to have breakfast especially with such a long day of filming ahead-" She argued, her arms akimbo along the curved outline of her tiny, jet-black clothed waist. Normally, by right, _Setsuka _the punk would definitely have had her skin exposed especially around her torso, but after Cain's terrifying objections the actress thought it better not to disagree. Besides, Setsuka adored her brother too much to disobey him... right?

"Feed me now." His rich baritone abruptly cut her words and thoughts off without preamble, and for a few seconds she stood there, blinking, _what?_

"Didn't you hear me?" Despite the light amusement that streaked his flat tone, she could also register the faint beginnings of impatience crossing his reticent demeanor. "I said feed me."

"Y-yes, of course, Nii-san!" Setsuka blurted, inwardly cursing herself for even reacting so surprisedly. After all, Cain's little sister had a severe brother's complex- she would die of elation to be able to personally feed her brother, not stand there and gawk like a dumb idiot! She bent down and picked up the untouched porcelain plate from the circular table, before turning hesitantly to Cain.

He had effortlessly angled the armchair towards her, so that his lean rangy frame deliberately faced her from where it sat sprawled on the chair like a potent large cat. His expression was unchanging, almost disinterested, and for a split second she painfully wondered if he was only doing this for the sake of acting and in truth it all simply bored him from all the dating experiences he already had.

Not that it mattered. _This _wasn't supposed to matter, not to her. She was simply supposed to do her job as Setsuka. And as his matchmaker.

Quietly, she made her way to where he indolently sat, her other hand carefully scooping up the slice of golden bread from the plate. Crumbs fluttered lightly. When she finally stood right before his unmoving form she leaned down and stretched out said hand towards him, extending her mouth-watering offering tenderly to his lips. All the while she realised that by bending down towards him her minute cleavage was being audaciously exposed to his eyes thanks to her low-cut camisole. It was so _embarrassing, _and after all this -despite her seemingly unconcerned facade- she was definitely going to curl up and die somewhere in a hole. What had happened to her promise to defend her chastity? It was all the President's fault for giving her such a slutty role like Setsuka!

It was his fault for everything right now, really.

"Nii-san, it's time to open up," Setsuka purred, gently pressing the oustretched toast along the curve of his sculpted lips, _slowly _smearing a faint trail of the creamy gold butter against his tautly closed mouth. His dark eyes flickered sedately up towards her, temporarily enrapturing her -against her will- into his almost hypnotic shadowed gaze. His large hand, so large it practically dwarfed hers, deliberately closed over her extended thin wrist with his spidery slender fingers. She was still, motionless, too caught up in that frozen heartbeat where his captivating warmth had enclosed her wrist to immediately react. And with a fluid, sudden _tug, _he had easily pulled her pliant form onto his lap and into his welcoming powerful arms. Her body rested against his much larger build stiffly, before gradually relaxing. His arms tightened around her, and despite the soundless action, it flashed a bold statement- she was _his_.

The clock, perched on the mantelpiece, ticked into the thick silence.

Cain stared down at the woman curled involunarily in his possessive embrace with calm, obsidian _hungry _eyes. He silently wondered if there were any concealed indecision in her doe eyes. If there was- he did not particularly care. In this moment, as Cain and she as Setsuka, this precious woman was someone he could mercilessly claim as his own- and take resolute advantage of this moment he would. His own to spoil, his own to love. No one else could have her, not even her familial loved ones. _He _was her familial loved one.

"Do you want to hold me so much, Nii-san?" She questioned haughtily, her manicured fingers tilted to one side from where her arm was tenderly held by his, toast still dangling precariously. Some of the butter had started to melt, and golden creamy liquid gathered along the bread crust dangerously.

"And if I do?" He answered her question with another question, his voice rich and quiet and arrogant, and it went on- the conversation of queries.

"And if I happen to like it?" She smiled saucily.

"Is that bad?"

He reached out silently and cradled her small fingers with a massive hand, the callouses on his slender digits lightly rubbing against her skin in an intimate nature. The butter dripped ever so slightly against their entwined fingers in an almost invisible golden trail, coolness against warmth. She nearly trembled. "Feed me."

Setsu did not question his quietly imperious command; neither did she want to. With no outward trace of her anxiety she brought the bread to his parted, thin lips. He allowed her access, his gaze never leaving her face, before abruptly closing his smoldering mouth over the bread _and_ her fingers before she could have the chance to withdraw. Her heart gave a lurch in her chest and she shuddered, unable to suppress it, as something hot and wet and vevet-smooth lapped at her trapped appendages. And throughout it all- his smoky, provocative eyes stared into hers beneath half-lidded sooty eyelashes as if he was having the most delectable meal out of _her _fingers rather than the bread. His face was so close to her own she could practically make out every angular curve of his patrician facial structure, and smell the musky spicy rain and men's shampoo that was his scent. A pang of heat shot through her suddenly tight stomach, and the washboard stone-hard abdomen her body was currently pressed against was not helping. She could practically feel the rigid outline of his abdominal muscles beneath her side.

Mogami Kyoko was currently weeping in mixture of anguish and jubilance underneath the shell Setsuka.

He could tell she was was beggining to get aroused. The slightly glazed look in her pretty eyes was not of her acting as Setsuka. but rather the reaction of _his_ proximity and ministrations. As a lover to many before her he had long trained himself to register the rising signs of arousal in females, and right then he could only feel immense masculine satisfaction that he was the one bringing all these foreign -of course- emotions in her, and not the cretin Sho. Undoubtedly she would become mortified again once the filming was over, but then that was also an adorably innocent side to her. However, he had no intention in allowing anyone to ever see this... _beautiful _version of her- aroused and submissive and confused. This was his, and his alone. It didn't matter that Kyoko wasn't his property outside of the BJ filming (much to his never-ending anguish), but this... this part of her was_ his._ No other man was allowed to see her this way, and he would ensure that it would stay like that.

Her mouth fell open as he tightened his mouth over her fingers, sucking on the salty taste of melted butter, the remains of toasted yeast and her soft but firm delicious fingers. He made sure that he lapped and licked up every crumb and smidge of butter from her skin before finally releasing her numb fingers from his relenting mouth. They fell limply into his awaiting large palm below, twitching moistly against his touch. His pregnant, unrepetant gaze flickered amusedly to her dumbstruck expression, noting how beautifully kissable her parted lips were. He had never kissed her before, and he had never wanted to do so to a female so desperately before. But then Kyoko Mogami, be it as Setsuka or herself, was special to him. He loved her.

_And he wanted to take her so badly._

Meanwhile, in Mogami Kyoko's case, she was currently starting to fear for herself. Her plan to push Tsuruga Ren over to Manaka's loving arms had already been well-sketched in her mind, and now all that was necessary was to take action. It had never occured to her that her willingness could crumble so easily.

What was she supposed to do now?

* * *

**Uhm, late update, sorry. I finally typed out some stuff and yeah sorry for short chappie. I thought there should be time for some Ren and Setsuka loving before all the drama starts later ^^ Btw this chapter had very little proof-reading so forgive me if there's lots of errors somewhere. Will edit the errors soon. Do hope you enjoy, and PS, reviews make me update faster! HAHA! Thanks to those who reviewed last chappie, love ya!**

**-_PPWSOT_**


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